THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

NY Assemblyman Strips 'Racist' Claim
from SUNY-Published Mideast Textbook

ALBANY, N.Y. (JTA) —
A controversy which de-
veloped when a university
press stopped publication of
a book on the Middle East
because, according to an of-
ficial of an American-Arab
group, it was "racist," has
been settled by Assembly-
man Alan Hevesi, president
of the National Association
of Jewish Legislators.
Hevesi said John Zogby,
field- representative of the
American-Arab Anti-
Discrimination Committee,
who made the racism
charge, refused a request to
submit evidence of his
charge.
The State of New York
University (SUNY) Press
discontinued publication of
"The United States and the
Middle East," by Philip
Groisser because of what
SUNY called "disappoint-
ing sales," Hevesi said.
Zogby then publicly
claimed publication was
halted because of his
committee's pressure on
the SUNY press to stop
printing the high school
textbook which he said
the committee consid-
ered "a racist attempt to
introduce propaganda
into the classroom.",

a great victory are false."
Hevesi said that on Nov.
10, he invited Zogby "to
submit a detailed
memorandum to the
authors of the new manu-
script so that they could
consider the charges of bias
and racism" made by the

American-Arab committee.
Hevesi reported that in a
letter to him dated Nov. 18,
Zogby "declined to do so and
stated," 'I was told months
ago by SUNY Press that
they had no plans to publish-
any more textbooks. I find
that policy much more ac

ceptable than any attempt
under pressure to publish a
racist one.' "
The Assemblyman com-
mented, "Obviously, Mr.
Zogby is more interested in
propaganda victories than
in having input in to the re-
vision of the original text."

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Hevesi, a Democrat who
represents Forest Hills,
N.Y., said he held separate
meetings with SUNY Press
representatives and with
Dr. Seymour Lachman, con-
sulting editor for the book
and chairman of the Na-
tional Committee for Mid-
dle East Studies.
After those meetings,
Hevesi said he had been
able to get from the SUNY
Press "a commitment to re-
publish an updated manu-
script, directed toward the
college level student, sub-
ject to the review and possi-
ble recommendations for
revisions by the (SUNY)
editorial board." Hevesi
said that arrangement had
been accepted by Lachman.

Hevesi said he had be-
come involved initially in
the matter because of his
concern that the SUNY
Press "was making a pub-
lishing concern based on
outside pressures from a
special interest group
which, if true, represents a
direct threat to the principle
of academic freedom."
He noted that SUNY of-
ficials had asserted that
the decision to halt publi-
cation of the book "was
based solely on economic
considerations and not
on any charges of bias or
racism as claimed" by the
American-Arab commit-
tee.
Hevesi said that if the
SUNY assertion was cor-
rect, then SUNY was "ex-
traordinarily insensitive in
announcing its decision to
discontinue publication
within a few weeks of Mr.
Zogby's initial attacks on
:,he book, and the
Anti-
\merican-Arab
Com-
Discrimination
mittee's continued claim of

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